Earl Spencer and Lady Bianca engagement off

Earl Spencer, the brother of Princess Diana, and Lady Bianca Eliot have called off their engagement, it emerged yesterday.

Lawyers for the pair, who only announced their plans to marry in March, said they had ended their relationship "some time ago" but remained friends.

The earl, 46, whose family seat is at Althorp, Northamptonshire, had been dating Lady Eliot, 33, for 18 months when their engagement was confirmed.

She would have been his third wife. At the time, a spokesman suggested they would set a date this month. Lawyers Schillings said in a statement: "We can confirm that Earl Spencer and Lady Eliot are no longer engaged, and that they remain good friends."